So i have completed my first week in Switzerland…
I want to share some of my observations and experiences about the people and other things in Switzerland.
People in Switzerland:
I don’t know why but I came to Swiss with the prejudice that people here will not be that helpful. But on the contrary, I have found people here a lot helpful. Though most of them can not understand / speak English they will try and understand you and will help you if they understand what you are saying. If they do not understand you then they will simply say sorry and go ahead.
I have also noticed that they mind their own business. I mean they do not interfere in each others life. Unless you ask someone no one will even notice you and bother that you are a foreigner unlike India.
Swiss people are very cautious about their health as well. They ensure that they are eating healthy things and I have found most of them having special salad dishes before the main meal. You will find many people taking a morning or evening walk on the roads as well as in the nearby farms.
One small thing which we do not follow in India is, you are not allowed to stand on the left side of the escalator. You have to walk if you by mistake take the left side. This is indicated on some of the escalators by the footsteps, which I noticed afterwords.
Traveling:
Switzerland has the concept of zones for traveling, unlike India where we have the concept of the source and destination stations. The Zurich canton itself is divided into around 25-30 zones with a specific number representing each zone. One can get the pass for the specific zones by identifying the zones one need to travel through. Alternatively one can get the pass for all the zones as well. You can visit any place any number of times within those zones. This is amazing when one knows the system in India, where you have to specify the source and destination stations and you can travel only once during a day on that pass.
Instead of a monthly pass, one can get an yearly pass as well which is more convenient and cheaper as well.
In Switzerland, there is also a concept of half pass or half ticket (not sure about the exact phrase for it). One can take a yearly half ticket pass for around 150CHF. This is very useful when you want to visit the places other than covered in your monthly/early commutation pass. If one has the half ticket pass then you have to pay just the half fare for visiting any place. One should get this pass when one decides to go for site seeing.
The other important thing is the same pass works for the trains, trams and buses as well. This is again a great feature especially when one compares it with India.
One thing I noticed while traveling by train was, people do not sit beside you even if one sit is empty. I did not understand the exact reason behind this. Is it because I am a foreigner or is it their very nature that they do not easily mingle with other people? I think i need to find out more about this…
Traveling by train:
All the trains are numbered like S1, S2, S3 and so on. One needs to find out the train number which can then be used to find out the timings and station information.
Most of the short distance trains are double decker and there are two classes for trains. First class and second class. A first class coach is indicated by yellow strips/lines on the coach. You may find the bottom layer of one or more coaches to be marked as first class while the upper layers not marked means second class.
Every coach has speakers which inform you about the name of the next station that will come within a minute or so. The doors of the coaches are automatic. There are buttons inside as well as outside which open the doors if pushed.
There is a waste-bin under every window as well as near the door where you can put the waste or any crap. And people really put the waste or crap in those bins unlike India where we have the habit of throwing things around.
Every station has at least 3 things besides the watch and other usual stuff:
- Automatic Ticket machine
- Zurich zonal map
- Timetable of the trains visiting that station
Some of the bigger stations also have the electronic display boards which constantly show the information of the next trains coming/going.
Swiss people first allow the passengers to get down and then only they start moving in, that too without a hurry. They are so disciplined… I remembered the situation in India and we are nowhere closer to Swiss people. One reason is definitely the population difference. But i think we can still do better if we wish to.
I was also amazed by the way they have interconnected their traveling system. Once you get out of the train most often you will find a tram or bus waiting outside of the station. This is really wonderful and that’s why traveling here is very cozy and relaxed.
People can even carry their cycles and baby carriages in the trains. There is a special area just besides the door for the cycles and baby carriages.
Traveling by tram:
Just like the trains the trams are also numbered. Every tram station has the tram numbers displayed indicating the trams which will halt at that station.
Every tram station again has the above mentioned 3 things. The station also has the route map of every tram. The current station is marked with an arrow on that map. The next stations are printed with black color while the stations which have already been traveled were a bit grayed out. So even if you just know the station you want to travel to you do not have to worry about the direction of the tram. You can simply go to the station on the other side of the road to take the same tram (i.e. one with the same number) going in the opposite direction.
Every tram coach again has an electronic display as well as the sound system which tells about the next station that is going to come. The display also shows the list of next 4/5 stations and the time in which the tram will reach there.
Buying Grocery:
Buying grocery is a big challenge for a foreigner coming to Switzerland. This is because of two things: people do not understand English and you do not know the names of many things in German but the products are named in German.
“Migros” is one of the chain of retailers like we have Subhiksha, Spencers, Reliance Fresh, More etc. where you can get pretty much everything. I mean what swiss people use in their daily lives.
But if you want to buy Indian stuff then that’s a bit tough. Yesterday I have found out one store named “Barkat” where you can get most of the Asian stuff. From pulses to readymade chapatis you can get most of the stuff there.
Traveling to “Barkat”:
You have to take 14 number tram from Zurich HB. (Oops, I forgot to write that the main train station at Zurich is called as Zurich HB (Zurich Haupt Bahnhof).
Take the tram going to Triemli. You have to get down to “Schmeide Wiedikon”. Just before the Schmeide Wiedikon station the tram takes a right turn ( while going there) where you will see Migros on the right side where as Barkat at left side. Just keep in mind that you have to walk backwards for around 100 m after getting down at the Schmeide Wiedikon station and keep on looking at the right side while you are walking back.
There I met a Hyderabadi guy who is doing MBA in Switzerland and is doing a part-time job as well in Barkat. He showed me around the shop so that I can buy most of the stuff I have to buy.
